Create a 7 page essay paper that discusses Monsanto: Treatment of the Natural Environment.Download file to see previous pages... Any activity within the industries that might be seen to be against env

Create a 7 page essay paper that discusses Monsanto: Treatment of the Natural Environment.

Any activity within the industries that might be seen to be against environmental law may result in lawsuits against the company in question. Whereas there are some companies which have consistently shown that they value the environment, there are others which have elicited heated criticisms due to the perception that they manufacture products that are not meant to be used by the public. Monsanto is a good example of a leading company that has been criticized for being insensitive to environmental needs as shown by the types of products it manufactures for public use (Robin, 2010). Company Background Monsanto is one of the biggest agriculture/biotechnology-based companies in the United States. It stands as the world’s largest producer of herbicide glyphosphate which it markets as RoundUp. It is also the largest producer and marketer of genetically engineered seed. actually, 90% of all the GE seeds used in the United States come from Monsanto. The company which is headquartered in Creve Coeur in Missouri was formed in 1991 by John Francis Queeny. The company’s first product was saccharin, a natural sweetener. Monsanto started exploring the production of basic industrial chemicals in the 1920s (Monsanto.com). During the Second World War, the company was among those that contributed to research on nuclear energy that led to the creation of the atomic bomb. Monsanto had been operating a nuclear facility on behalf of the US government up until the late 80s. In mid 20th century, Monsanto got engaged in the production of synthetic fibres and plastics. The company was once ranked among the top in terms of production of chemicals that generated the most hazardous waste (Robin, 2010). Monsanto is one of the top chemical producing companies in the US. It has at the forefront championing for the use of chemical pesticides in farms. One of its chemical products, Agent Orange, was used by the U.S. forces in Vietnam as a defoliant. This chemical was later disclosed to contain higher and many times more toxic levels of carcinogens and dioxin than those used by Dow chemicals to produce the same Agent Orange. The managers at Monsanto knew of the effects that these chemicals would have on the people they were exposed to, but they went ahead and sold them to the government to be used as a weapon against humans. According to Robin (2010), a total of 3 million people who came into contact with Monsanto’s Agent Orange were affected somehow, with 500,000 Vietnamese children being born with deformities. Although Monsanto has grown over the years, it has had to grapple with the problem of never ending lawsuits, most of which are related to the environmental effects its products have. Individual farmers, environmental activists and even governments have been involved in lawsuits against the company at different times. All these legal issues have centred around the effects that the company’s products may have had on people, animals, plants and the rest of the environment (Pringle, 2005). &nbsp. &nbsp.&nbsp. Positive Aspects of the Company Monsanto has a social performance record. It is one of the corporate sponsors of the world-famed attractions at Walt Disney world and Disneyland. At Disneyland, the company sponsored the hall of chemistry until 1967.